Yarmoluk Sm, Kovalska Vb, Losytskyy My
Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Biotech Histochem. 2008 Jun;83(3-4):131-45. doi: 10.1080/10520290802383684.
A novel approach to the design of sensitive fluorescent probes for nucleic acids detection is proposed. Suitable modifications of tri- and pentamethine cyanine dyes in the polymethine chain and/or in the heterocyclic residues can result in a significant decrease in unbound dye fluorescence intensity and an increase in dye emission intensity in the presence of DNA compared to the unsubstituted dye. The sharp enhancement in the fluorescence intensity upon dye interaction with double-stranded DNA permits the application of the modified tri- and pentamethine dyes as fluorescent probes in double-stranded DNA detection in homogeneous assays.
